


What Remains

by Dark_Xenon



Category: Hollow Knight (Video Game)
Genre: Other
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-09-12
Updated: 2017-09-12
Packaged: 2018-12-26 19:31:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,530
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12065556
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Dark_Xenon/pseuds/Dark_Xenon
Summary: It only takes one moment of weakness to let the infection in.





	1. Initiation

**Author's Note:**

> Leif and Rona are both owned by me
> 
> Kieza is the fan-name given to the Traitor Lord
> 
> This fic was beta read by QueenEgg

Leif slowly opened his eyes. He had expected to no longer be among the living, for there was no way the nail wouldn’t have killed him. Instead, what he saw in front of him made him wish he was dead.

Kneeling in front of Leif was the body of Rona, with a large gash across their entire body. He could only stare in shocked silence at his lover as their entire body seemingly began to dissipate. Rona looked down at their husband and tilted their head into a smile as more of their body turned into black specks. A final tear fell from the large mask before the last of their body disappeared and their now empty mask fell onto Leif.

“No...” Leif whispered to himself. “No, no, no, no,  _NO_!” He repeated, over and over as the world slowed from a crawl to a complete standstill. He stared at the mask in silence, its right horn had broken off from the attack it had received. As he stared, he felt something within him snap.

‘ _lightshiningblazingbright_ ,’ these thoughts kept appearing in his head repeatedly as he placed the mask down and stood up from where he had been knocked over. They looked over at the Great Husk Sentry that had struck down Rona. A renewed sense of rage flowed through his body as he leapt toward the reanimated bug. He found himself easily breaking through its guard, mercilessly tearing away at the husk’s body; not even stopping when the reanimated bug was long dead again. Afterwards, he found himself devouring the body, the hunger never being fully sated even after completely consuming the remains of a creature much larger than himself.

Leif stood up, the orange in his eyes glowing in the pale light of the city. He started walking away before he stopped himself, turning around and looking at the last remnants of his lover. He flew over to it before reaching down and holding it, giving another glance into its face. Turning it around, he placed it onto his own face, the orange lights shining out from the holes.

He hopped up and flapped his wings to keep afloat as he left the area, in search of more food.

* * *

As time went on, he continued to eat and eat the husks that crossed his path. He had taken refuge within his original home- the Queen’s Gardens -at the center of the room Lord Kieza had previously resided in. He too, had been devoured, along with the unknown body that resided next to it.

Later still, Leif had grown. Grown to the point where he was the comparable in height to Kieza himself. The infection was far more prominent now than it was before. The glow in his eyes had only become brighter with time, but the infection had fused his deceased lover’s mask with his own face.

He was an insatiable embodiment of fury; never hesitant to strike down anyone who opposed him in the gardens. However, every once in awhile he would calm down for a period of time. Unknown to everyone, even himself, the shade of his fallen lover was still with him, silently embracing him during his rage in an attempt to soothe his anger. Although their husband could not see them, Rona continued to wait for the day that Leif would be free from what had become of him...


	2. Confrontation

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was beta read by QueenEgg

Ghost wandered through the overgrowth, somewhat perplexed by the recent change in behavior of the Queen’s Garden’s mantis tribe. Even after they killed Lord Kieza, there wasn’t much of a change in how the mantis traitors and petras acted. Now, the wild tribe seemed even more ferocious than usual.

As they explored the lush, overgrown wilds, they found that the bodies of many creatures were scattered all around the gardens. The deeper they went, the more fresh corpses they discovered. Several of them had large pieces missing, with horns, limbs, and even chunks of flesh torn apart by some immense force.

A trail of carcasses littering the overgrown pathways lead back to where Lord Kieza had previously resided, and after following the path for some time, they found themselves back within the once cluttered battleground. However, it was much more dilapidated than it had been, with both Lord Kieza’s and Cloth’s bodies nowhere to be seen. Giving the room a once over, the warrior could hear the sound of _something_ crunching and tearing as they walked down the path to where the White Lady resided.

Turning a corner, they came across the source of the sound. What they saw was a large mantis petra, though it was somewhat larger than Lord Kieza had been back when they fought him, and its form had warped into a more monstrous version of its smaller kin. They also noted that it was wearing a large mask upon its face. When Ghost stepped forward on the plant covered ground, they were heard and the large mantis turned towards them.

The first thing Ghost noticed were the creature’s bright glowing orange eyes, which dripped with infection that stemmed from inside the mask they wore. The second thing they noticed was what was apparently the leg of a loodle hanging out from the petra’s mouth before it was quickly gobbled up with another series of crunches as the mantis stood taller. Its large claws were already poised to strike as it leapt towards Ghost with a speed that they hadn’t thought it to be capable of. They quickly brought up their nail in retaliation and dashed forward to meet the Petra head on.

* * *

It had been some time since the beginning of the fight, but the two of them were still clashing;  neither one willing to give in to the other as they continued to trade blows. Any damage the Ghost took, they were able to repair, while the Petra seemed to shrug off most of the blows they dealt, their weapon unable to land a proper hit on the agile foe.

However, during one of their collisions, the small warrior managed to land a powerful blow on the mask the Petra wore upon their face. The already broken covering shattered to multiple pieces and fell the the floor, with the mantis staring at its remnants in shock for a moment. A few seconds later, the creature released a loud screech as it quickly bounded towards Ghost again, their limbs flailing everywhere, leaving almost no room for error should they wish to avoid being slashed at.

Before, though the infected mantis hadn’t been nearly as graceful as those that inhabited the Fungal Wastes, it still seemed to have some preferred form of combat. Now, it's only tactic was an enraged flurry of swings as it desperately tried to maim its prey, thick  liquid infection dripping down their face with every movement.

As the fight dragged on, Ghost began to notice a figure following their enemy’s movements. It appeared to cling to them, and whenever they would get close enough to the petra, it would ease off their attacks for a moment until the figure was brushed off.

When they directed all their focus on their translucent ally, they were able to recognise the figure as another vessel. Their shadowy form wove in between the two opponents, and whenever they were able to get a grip on the mantis, it would take a moment to collect itself. Using the sparse openings they were provided, Ghost unleashed their strongest attacks to attempt to bring down the monster before them.

Eventually, after a long and arduous battle, the creature dropped to its knees and fell forward with a ground-shaking thud. It wasn’t dead yet, but it thoroughly incapacitated enough to stop them from getting back up. Ghost walked toward its head and withdrew one of their items from inside themselves.

Standing in front of the fallen petra, they took out the dream nail and _swung-_

_‘Please, no more...’_

_‘It’s so bright...’_

_‘I miss them so much...’_

_‘I miss…’_

Putting away the dream nail, they took their regular nail out again and charged up for one last great slash. It was with one final, decisive strike that they ended the creature’s life. Taking a moment to bow before the corpse of their defeated foe, Ghost hoped they would find peace and rest in death as they departed from the cavern.

* * *

After the Ghost had left the area, Leif took one last look around. The most obvious thing in the room was his own body laying on the ground below him with his spirit hovering above it.

“Well... I suppose I’m finally free then, aren’t I Rona?” he asked, turning to see his lover’s shade floating behind him, tears freely flowing from their eyes, as they were oft to do. He glided over and embraced them, feeling their arm surround him in in a gesture he hadn’t experienced for what felt like ages. “I think it’s about time that we both got out of here, isn’t it?” he posed one final question before the two of them began to disappear, their bodies rising further away from the ground as they vanished without leaving a single trace.


End file.
